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What’s Trending in Marketing For January 2024

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Presenting our monthly newsletter focused on delivering the most recent marketing trends and global updates. This newsletter serves as your exclusive resource to stay well-informed and current with the monthly trends in the marketing and digital world. As we explore this year’s correlation with Nickelodeon and the Super Bowl advertisements, the evolvement of Artificial Intelligence and Virtual Reality in digital marketing, influencers, insurance battles, and more. We invite you to join us while we explore 2024’s exciting new marketing trends.

Noteworthy Marketing News

2024’s Super Bowl Ads

Get ready for a touchdown of nostalgia and entertainment as Nickelodeon takes stage during the 2024 Super Bowl advertisements. This delightful journey for viewers of all ages only took six weeks to sell out. This year’s advertisement roster includes new and sweet commercials from Reese’s, Hershey’s, Nerds, and more to feed your cravings while you watch your favorite team win. This unique collaboration between Nickelodeon and brands adds an extra layer of excitement to the Super Bowl ad lineup. It’s not just about entertainment; it’s about creating an experience that captures the essence of both Nickelodeon’s charm and the thrill of Super Bowl Sunday into one. Read more here. 

The Average Spend For This Year’s Super Bowl Ads

Super Bowl commercials are highly expensive coveted spots due to the massive viewership of the event, making them one of the most expensive slots in the advertising world. In a groundbreaking move, the Paramount Global-owned network is setting the stage with an extraordinary opportunity for brands to showcase their products and services for $7 million for every 30-second commercial in the Super Bowl. Read more here. 

 

Interested in Last Years Major Trends? Click here. 

 

Revolutionizing Marketing: The Impact of AI and VR

As our generations grow, the evolvement of our technology reaches points we’ve never imagined. Artificial Intelligence aka AI, revolutionized the size of marketing that we have today. AI has made it easier for marketers to think outside the box. It helps marketing companies find new ways to analyze data and create a new and unique user experience for their clients. Take a look at the intelligence of VR (virtual reality) for example. VR recently became trending because of it’s game-changer experience for users and its evolvement in the digital marketing world. One of the biggest VR applications lies in experiential marketing, where brands create virtual environments that allow users to interact with products or services in a simulated setting. Additionally, VR is reshaping the e-commerce scape by enabling virtual try-on experiences for products, allowing customers to virtually test and visualize items before making a purchase. The convergence of VR and marketing is not only a trend but also a transformative force that is reshaping the way brands connect with their audience in the digital age. Read more here. 

Recent Marketing Reports, Updates, and Trends

Social Media Influencers

This year, social media influencers remain key in brand relationships. Receiving excessive PR packages to attract their audience is one of the main advertisements they do. Influencers are now more creative, transforming basic product videos into relatable stories. As they enhance storytelling techniques, the blend of creativity, authenticity, and brand promotion reshapes digital marketing, making ads enjoyable for the audience. Viewers feel credibility and reliability, providing a genuine avenue for brand promotion. Multiple influencers endorsing the same brand is common on social media. Read more here. 

 

Learn More About What Social Media Influencer Jobs Do. 

 

LinkedIn Becoming Another Social Media App?

LinkedIn has achieved a significant milestone by reaching one billion members worldwide. Considering it is an app made for only finding jobs, it has sky-rocketed in members because of the new digital age our generation is getting into. It is taking a new turn by having people update their profiles not only with the new jobs and opportunities they’re achieving, but additionally by updating their hobbies, life skills, advice, and more. Possibly making it become a platform more reachable around the world like Instagram and TikTok. Read more here. 

AI Emerges As a New Assistant When Digital Marketing

The influence of AI in marketing is undeniably taking place in the marketing field. Google’s President, Americas and Global Partners, and Sean Downey, predict that it will stand out as the single most significant trend in 2024. As 64% of marketers are already using AI in their businesses, 38% of those who are not already using AI, plan to finally use it starting this year. Read more here. 

 

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What’s Trending in Marketing For November 2023

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Welcome to our November 2023 edition of “What’s Trending,” where we bring you the most relevant marketing trends and insights. Stay informed and ahead of the game with our curated collection of marketing trends and reports in winter 2023.

Noteworthy Marketing Trends and News

The Guardian view on festive marketing: stop spending like there’s no tomorrow

In 1998, a British newspaper introduced “Black Friday” as a post-Thanksgiving shopping phenomenon in the US. Today, global spending on advertising during the festive season is predicted to reach a record £9.5bn. However, the environmental impact of promoting overconsumption is a growing concern. The Guardian explores the idea of banning or regulating ads to address misleading environmental claims. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) is criticized for its lax approach, with only a small fraction of environmental ad complaints investigated. Tightening regulations is proposed as a step toward aligning advertising with the urgent need for climate-conscious practices.

Microsoft Advertising Shares Holiday Season Marketing Playbook

Elf A SelfieMicrosoft Advertising provides insights in its Festive Holiday Marketing Playbook to help businesses enhance holiday sales. Key points include understanding the timing of revenue peaks around Black Friday and Cyber Monday, leveraging deal-seeking behaviors among consumers, and capitalizing on search for online and in-store purchases. The National Retail Federation predicts a 3-4% increase in US holiday spending. Advertisers are encouraged to align strategies with the ‘Cyber-5’ period and utilize search for targeted advertising. 

Popular cereal gets Bud Light treatment after sneaky marketing campaign

Kid Rock’s anti-Bud Light campaign, sparked by the beer brand’s association with a transgender model, has now shifted to target Kellogg’s-owned Froot Loops in Canada. The cereal faces a boycott after promoting equity, diversity, and inclusion on its boxes, urging kids to practice pronouns. Social media users criticized the move, with some accusing it of “woke indoctrination.” Froot Loops’ digital library, tied to the promotion, offers diverse topics for families. The backlash reflects an ongoing trend of brands facing criticism for perceived political messaging, following controversies like Bud Light’s partnership with a transgender model and Target’s transgender branding frenzy.

Find these articles interesting? You may like: Creating Successful Holiday Marketing Campaigns

Learning Marketing Trends and Ideas

Micro Moments: A New Consumer Behavior in Marketing

Successful businesses understand that consumer behavior in marketing does not stay the same. Consumer behavior changes based on a variety of factors, including new tools and ways of using those tools. The smartphone drastically changed consumer behavior in marketing. This happened somewhat recently, yet people already spend roughly 3.5 hours a day on their phones. The way that a person interacts with their phone is much different than how they interact with TV, magazine ads, or their computer. As a result, marketers must expand the ways in which they engage with consumers in order to continue capturing their attention. Continue to read here. 

Essential Website Updates for Senior Living Communities

According to a study by the Pew Research Center, as of 2021, 73% of adults over the age of 65 in the United States use the internet. This number has been steadily increasing over the years, highlighting the importance of a strong online presence for senior-focused businesses. This article will explore key website updates that senior living communities should consider. The goal is to stay relevant and provide the best possible experience for their audience. Continue to read here. 

The Brand Loyalty Of Generation X

Consumers like certain brands. They develop a trust that the brand’s products are of the right quality and a good value. That trust, along with other positive emotions, causes consumers to develop brand loyalty, where they tend to buy certain products from particular brands now and into the future. How brand loyalty works depends on many factors, age and status in life being two. It is critical to understand how a particular generation develops brand loyalty. The insights gained by this understanding make marketing to the generation in question much easier. Let’s look at Generation X for example. Continue to read here.

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Recent Marketing Trends, Reports, and Updates

2024 B2B Tech Marketing Trends: The Year Of Authenticity 

As 2024 approaches, marketing trends point to a shift from traditional content to richer experiences, a return to genuine human interactions amid automation, and a move beyond numerical dominance in analytics. AI’s role may bring humorous hiccups, emphasizing the value of human intuition. Niche specialists are expected to dominate the influencer landscape. Return on investment will extend beyond financial metrics, and marketing strategies will shift away from linear funnels to dynamic customer journeys. Hyper-personalization is seen as a double-edged sword, requiring a balance between relevance and privacy. Success in 2024 involves revisiting core values and creating meaningful connections.

Ogilvy reveals key influencer marketing trends for 2024

The report cites how live streaming across social platforms will continue to be a critical medium. Sixty six percent of brands already report that creator-led content delivers more ROI than traditional ads. Influencers could see revenue opportunities through live streaming over traditional subscription models as more platforms integrate payment schemes. 

Predicting the top 5 digital marketing trends for 2024 

Over the past year, significant changes occurred in the digital marketing space: the DOJ’s antitrust lawsuit against Google finally going to trial, Apple’s iOS 17 introducing more privacy-centric features that upended the tracking status quo, the EU issuing multi-million-dollar fines against Criteo for GDPR violations, streaming TV overtaking linear TV in viewership, the collapse of MediaMath, Amazon’s impending launch of ads on Prime Video, and—finally—Disney and Spectrum agreeing to a revolutionary new model for linear TV programming and the ways that content providers and multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs) work together. See the top 5 digital marketing predictions.

Read Article: What We Can Learn from Viral Video Marketing & Examples of How It’s been Successful

What’s Trending in Marketing For October 2023

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Welcome to our October 2023 edition of “What’s Trending,” where we bring you the most relevant marketing news and insights. Stay informed and ahead of the game with our curated collection of marketing trends and reports in fall 2023.

Noteworthy Marketing News 

Booking.com Is Striking a New Balance Between Brand and Performance

In 2022, Booking.com showed up at the Super Bowl for the first time with a spot starring Idris Elba. It booked a second ticket to the Big Game in 2023, making a comeback with actress and producer Melissa McCarthy. For Natalie Wills, vp of brand at Booking.com, these star-studded multi-channel campaigns are emblematic of how the travel giant is increasingly walking the line between brand building and performance marketing. “Historically, we’ve been quite a performance-led organization, but in the last couple of years, we’ve really been delving into brands,” she explained. Read more here. 

What Marketers Are Saying About Their Marketing Misalignment Woes

Modern marketing organizations are truly impressive, creative powerhouses that drive impact through their content, and backed by refined analytics and business intelligence. The one thing they often miss, however, is organizational alignment. Executives lack insight into the work being done – independent contributors don’t understand how their daily work connects to the plan and managers are stuck in the middle without enough information to communicate up or down effectively. Read more here. 

How NIL deals and brand sponsorships are helping college athletes make moneyNFL Brand Marketing trends 2023

Student-athlete influencers have become key parts of marketing strategies for companies and capitalized on their athletic performance to bring in previously unattainable levels of fame and fortune. The NIL market is worth an estimated $1 billion annually. The industry’s growth has been driven in large part by collectives. These donor-backed groups facilitate NIL opportunities like autograph signings and appearances at fundraisers and account for 80% of the money flowing to student-athletes. Read more here. 

Find these articles interesting? You may like: How to Leverage Influencer Marketing for Your Brand’s Success

Improving Your Marketing Program

5 SMART Goal Example For Business Development

A smart goal is basically what the acronyms from the name suggest. It is specific, measurable, attainable, and relevant and time bound. The Smart Goal process provides a frame where you can create a long term goal. It also provides a time limit for you to work on the same goal. By doing this business’ are 70% more successful in achieving their goals thanks to regular check-ins, updates and group accountability. Check out some smart goal examples for business development that will help you understand the system better and enhance your business. Continue to read here. 

Emotional Advertising: How Brands Use Feelings to Get People to Buy

emotional advertising marketing trends 2023Emotional advertising uses emotions to connect with consumers and encourage them to buy a product or service. This type of advertising appeals to the heart rather than the head, and it can be quite effective in leaving a lasting impact on customers. Informing your audience is important. You want potential buyers to understand what their problem is, and how your products or services can solve that problem. Unfortunately, people don’t generally make purchases based on information alone. It turns out that people are more prone to making emotional purchases than informed purchases. It’s why commercials consist of much more than an explanation of a product’s use. Instead they use emotional advertising to target the viewer. Continue to read here. 

4 Essential Brand Component

There’s a common misconception that many people have that a “brand” is basically just the name of the company and the logo that they use. While these elements contribute to the overall brand of a business, the term “brand” is actually much more comprehensive than that. It involves many different components, which is why it takes a lot of thought in order to successfully develop your brand. The following are the four main brand components that you will need to address when building your brand and what kinds of strategies you can put into place to further develop those components. Continue to read here.

Learn The StoryBranding Process

Recent Marketing Reports, Updates, and Trends

Marketing Briefing: Here are 5 marketing trends you have missed from 2023 Advertising Week 

Another Advertising Week New York has come and gone. And while the event last week, in its nineteenth iteration, was hybrid in-person and online, it covered topics that have dominated marketers’ minds this year. Here are the 5 top takeaways you might’ve missed if you weren’t able to attend. Read the full article. 

Adapt Or Persist? Analyzing 5 B2B Marketing Trends In 2023

B2B Marketing trends 2023The marketing landscape is undergoing a significant shake-up—from a laser focus on data privacy to widespread layoffs in tech to the game-changing impact of generative AI. When it comes to marketing strategies, it’s crucial to understand what’s shifted and what’s remained constant. Forbes surveyed more than 300 B2B marketing professionals with the goal of understanding their priorities and budgets, as well as how they’re using AI. Forbes identified five trends and strategies for business leaders and marketers as we venture further into the back half of 2023. Read the full article. 

75 Branding Statistics for 2024: Top Insights and Marketing Trends 

The rise of the internet and digital marketing has unleashed new possibilities for brand marketers. Before the internet, brands were built in boardrooms and involved mass advertising to reach the public. If you’re looking to master the art of building a great brand, then understanding how customers perceive brands is crucial. Let’s look into some of the most important branding statistics. Read the full article.

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What’s Trending in Marketing for January 2021

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Knowing what’s trending in marketing is a great way to keep your marketing efforts fresh and to find new tactics that can help improve your marketing strategy. We know it can be difficult to keep up with these trends, so we’ve gathered some current marketing trends that are worth paying attention to:

Noteworthy Marketing News

Audio Social Media is Booming

In a time of social isolation and screen fatigue, audio social media is all the rage. While audio communication has been around for a while, new apps are making voice the way people connect again. Clubhouse, Discord, Wavve, and Twitter’s developing Audio Spaces are trying to win people’s ears and shape the future of social media. Read more on Wired.

Facebook Asks Users to Opt Into Activity Tracking Ahead of iOS 14 Changes

Facebook’s business has been growing steadily during the COVID-19 pandemic, but that might change in 2021. The company disclosed that the new privacy features in Apple’s iOS 14 update could lead to a slowdown in advertising revenue. In order to combat the potential adverse effects, Facebook has announced plans for users to still allow tracking for personalized ads. Users with iOS 14 will receive a prompt asking to use their app and website activity. Facebook is testing the effects of this update now before Apple makes it mandatory for all apps in the spring.

NBCUniversal and Twitter Announce New Worldwide Digital Content Partnership

NBCUniversal and Twitter have been working together since 2013, but they recently announced that they are deepening their partnership. They want to meet global, national, and local audiences where they are. This new agreement will bring NBCUniversal’s premium digital content, from real-time sports to red carpet livestreams, to Twitter, meeting the growing demand for premium social content. See more details on Marketing Dive.

Budweiser, Coca-Cola, and PepsiCo Sit Out in Advertising Their Trademark Beverages at This Year’s Super Bowl

With the first-ever COVID-era Super Bowl just around the corner, major brands like Budweiser, Coca-Cola, and PepsiCo have announced that they will not be advertising their trademark beverages. These brands usually spend millions on commercials, but they have decided to reallocate those funds towards COVID-19 vaccine awareness and other resources.

Latest Color Trends Show that We Are All Hoping for a Redemptive 2021

Calm. Sanctuary. Transcend. Illuminate. These are all words popular companies like Sherwin Williams, Behr, and Pantone are using to name and describe their 2021 colors of the year; these companies, as well as many others, chose their colors to speak to the events of 2020. In light of those events, it seems to be clear that everyone is looking for stability, peace, and restoration in 2021, even in color.

You Might Like: 5 Marketing Tactics You Should Be Using in 2021

 

Improving Your Marketing Program

Why Call to Action Phrases Are So Important in Inbound Marketing

Call to action phrases seem so innocuous. They are just a few words on a link or a button. Yet, CTAs are some of the most powerful and important elements on your website to support your Inbound Marketing efforts. Without them, your conversion rate is not going to be anywhere close to where it should be. Learn why here.

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The Future of Email: What to Expect

Although one of the oldest forms of online marketing, email marketing is consistently one of the most cost-effective marketing strategies there is, and it will continue to be so well into the future. Therefore, it’s worth thinking about the future of email in order to begin adjusting your email marketing strategy accordingly. What to expect.

Ten Ways to Use Google Trends to Increase SEO-Jan 25

Most people love free SEO tools. Google Trends is one of the most underused free tools; it is a place marketers can use to get their finger on the global pulse. Learn how to increase SEO using Google Trends here.

Recent Marketing Reports, Updates, and Trends

Social Media Ad and Video Spend Skyrocketed in Q4 2020

One thing to learn from 2020 is how quickly advertising behaviors change. Last year, people began to spend a lot more time on smartphones and other devices to stay connected and entertained, and this increased time online led to a lot more streaming and shopping. Marketers then began to make big investments into tactics to engage homebound customers. By the peak of the holiday season, worldwide spend on social media advertising was up 50.3%, in comparison to the same time in 2019. In North America, there was a 92.3% YoY spike in social media ad spending, much of that via livestreaming content. For 2021, it is expected that directly “shoppable media,” such as livestreams and shoppable ads, will be the fastest-growing advertising categories. Livestream-generated sales are estimated to double to $120 billion worldwide this year. This data is critical for marketers to create campaigns that will continue to resonate with consumers. More details here.

Influencer Marketing: Social media influencer market stats and research for 2021

Insider published their “Influencer Marketing in the Age of COVID-19” report, and it is clear that influencer marketing isn’t going anywhere in 2021. By this time next year, the estimate is that influencer marketing will be a $15 billion industry, up from as much as $8 billion in 2019. As fast as this industry is growing, it is also changing, so it is imperative that brands learn to adapt and evolve their strategies. Influencers are no longer exclusive to those with millions of followers. Some of the most influential influencers are those with only thousands. This means that niches of all kinds are being covered. Influencers are becoming vital in helping brands connect with their target audiences in authentic ways that produce immediate results. You can access the full report on Insider.

Ads on Facebook May Not Be That Important for Brands, After All, Study Shows

In a recent Forrester study, 46 companies that participated in last year’s Facebook ad boycott were examined to see the effects of not buying advertising on Facebook. Out of those 46, only seven companies saw their revenue decrease in Q3 as compared to Q2. The other 36 companies saw their revenue increase from quarter to quarter. In 2019, Facebook made just shy of $70 billion from ad revenue. This means a lot of companies are trusting Facebook to bring in online customers. But analysts are beginning to question the value and payoff that Facebook brings to its companies that use its advertising services.

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Five Tips for Effective Inbound Marketing for Healthcare

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Quality healthcare has always been important, but it’s even more important during the pandemic. More people are searching for health-related information than ever before. As such, it’s critical that your healthcare business is in a position to be found. To achieve this, you need to implement a strong, long-term inbound marketing strategy. A good inbound marketing strategy can help drive awareness of your business and help generate more leads. It’s why you should work with a reputable healthcare marketing agency. With that in mind, the following are five essential inbound marketing tips for healthcare businesses:

1. Add Educational Content To Your Website

One of the most important goals you should have is to build trust with your audience. Trust is essential to any healthcare business; after all, your customers are often putting their lives in your hands. With that in mind, you should add educational content to your website. This content shouldn’t promote your services or products. Instead, it should educate your audience. The more informed they are, the more confident they will be in making a purchasing decision. Not to mention that it helps build your brand authority, which directly increases trust.

COVID-19 Content

An example of educational content might be a page dedicated to COVID-19. This page could explain what the symptoms are, what patients should do if they exhibit symptoms, and how they should seek help if needed. Not only are you providing valuable information that can save lives, but you’re also providing relevant information that can build trust.

2. Build A Compelling Website

Your website is the foundation of your inbound marketing efforts. It doesn’t matter how good your content is if your website is poor. The following are just a few important elements of a compelling website:

  • No technical issues – Broken links and slow loading pages can hinder the user experience. Few visitors will stay on your site for more than a few seconds if they’re encountering technical problems.
  • Visually pleasing layout – Your website should be visually pleasing. A poorly designed website that looks outdated will give visitors reservations about your healthcare company’s quality.
  • Easy navigation – Your site should be easy to navigate. Make it easy for your visitors to jump from one section to another and to find what they’re looking for.  Besides a solid navigation menu, you should also use internal links to help guide your visitors to related content and pages.
  • Ability to contact you – Whether visitors have questions or want to schedule appointments, it’s vital that you make it easy for them to contact you. Your contact information should be on every page. However, you should also have a page dedicated to your contact information where visitors can fill out a form. You should also think about incorporating a live chat or chatbot feature to provide basic information and guidance.

3. Maximize Your Email Marketing Strategy

Email marketing has been an incredibly cost-effective marketing strategy since the beginning of online marketing. Healthcare companies, in particular, can benefit from email marketing. For example, you can create an email newsletter that leads and customers alike can sign up for. You can use this newsletter to educate your audience and to build trust in your brand. You can achieve this by using your newsletter to provide new health information,  healthcare tips, and office updates. A good email marketing strategy can allow you to nurture more leads and encourage more appointments.

4. Use Social Media

Social media is one of the best ways to engage directly with your target audience. Many people turn to social media in order to seek healthcare-related advice. In fact, it’s estimated that 40 percent of people say that they use information they found on social media to make health-related decisions. If you establish a regular presence on your social media channels, you’ll be able to offer professional advice to potential patients. As a result of such engagement, you can build trust. Not to mention that any interactions you have will be public, which will help to generate more brand awareness.

5. Create A Blog

While you should have educational content throughout your website, a blog can be particularly helpful. A blog allows you to publish new content on a regular basis. It also allows you to publish content that may be relevant to a specific time. For instance, a post on health-care-related laws passed during the pandemic would be a great blog post. However, you can use your blog to post about all kinds of general disease information.

An effective healthcare inbound marketing strategy is essential to your company’s success, especially at this point in time. Although these marketing tips are incredibly effective, they do require time, experience, and expertise to implement successfully. As such, you should strongly consider working with a professional healthcare marketing agency.

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What’s Trending in Marketing for August 2020

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Staying current on marketing trends is especially important to assess whether your marketing efforts are harmonious with today’s evolving world. We know the difficulty of keeping up with these trends given the abundance of information thrown at us every day. The following articles highlight current August 2020 marketing trends that we think are worth paying attention to:

Noteworthy Marketing News

Hulu Launches Beta for Self-Serve Advertising Platform

In effort to combat the negative economic backlash of Covid-19, Hulu has created an opportunity for small businesses to use its platform. Hulu has recently launched a self-service advertisement program eligible for any company with a minimum ad budget as low as $500. The process is simple: a company creates and submits a 15-30 second creative video along with details on budget, date range, and an area to upload the ad to Hulu Ad Manager. Hulu approves or denies within 3 days. Brands also have the option to specify their target market by age, gender, genre and location. Hulu provides approved brands with a simple walk-through of set-up and launch. For this program, Hulu permits a maximum of one version of a creative video per campaign.

As part of its recent Enabling Dishonest Behavior Policy, Google Ads is banning any advertising for “spyware and surveillance technology” in both search and shopping starting August 11. Examples of services include fake passports, fake degrees or diplomas, drug test aids, exam or paper writing services, invalid reviews and clicks, and fake social media endorsements. Examples of unauthorized access includes hacking, cable-stealing, radar jamming technology, traffic signal changers, and phone/wiretapping. Google explains that its list is not exhaustive and only mentioned for example. Google exemplifies spyware as GPS trackers, cameras/recorders marketed for spying purposes, and software that monitors someone else’s texts and phone calls, with the exception of parents tracking underage children. Violators on Google Ads will receive a 7-day warning.

Social Short: Twitter Ad Engagement Drops, Snap Minis Launch, more brands pause Facebook Ads

Twitter’s ad revenues have fallen in the past years though daily active user rates have increased. However, Twitter’s CFO Ned Segal is confident in the rebuilding process of Twitter’s ad server. He expresses optimism for the future of advertisements on Twitter through the advantage the platform has for live events.  Snapchat reports a 17% increase in revenues. Though its audience is largely younger, Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel found that the average number of users on the Discover page are in their thirties. Additionally, the platform has benefited from the increasing Facebook ad withdrawals. Twitter has also taken action against QAnon content, suspending thousands of accounts for sharing or associating with any “conspiracy theory-ridden content”.

Improving your Marketing Program

Lessons Learned: Buyer Persona Gone Wrong

Before a company can establish a solid marketing plan, it must be aware of the specific target markets or customer profiles it has the best chance to attract to its product or service. Creating a buyer persona is essential to effective attraction marketing. In order to perfect your approach in buyer persona launch, here are some common mistakes to avoid.

30 Ways to Boost Instagram Engagement & Following

Looking for ways to boost your social media brand presence? Knowing how to increase brand engagement on Instagram, the latest and hippest social media platform app, is a great start. People are online all day due to working from home. Virtual shopping has risen due to restrictions and pandemic fears. As we have geared toward a more online world, your brand’s presence on the web is more important now than ever. According to Forbes, 80% of Instagram users follow at least one business or brand, and 200 million users on Instagram visit business profiles daily. 70% of users turn to Instagram to look up a brand, and 60% learn about new products using Instagram. Now is the time to catch up with the competition that is already using these trends to their advantage.

Istanbul, Turkey – December 15, 2018: Person holding a brand new Apple iPhone X with Instagram profile on the screen. Instagram is an online mobile social networking service, launched in October 2010.

5 Ways to Improve Your B2B Marketing Strategy

B2B marketing can be a challenging endeavor, especially if you don’t have a clear cut marketing strategy in place. To have any hope of running a successful B2B marketing campaign, you’ll need to establish what your goals are. Once you’ve done so, you should implement marketing strategies that will support those goals and help you achieve them. The following are five B2B marketing tips that you should use to help improve your marketing efforts.

Free Digital Marketing Tools To Cope With COVID-19

Recent Marketing Reports, Updates, and Trends

No in-person events until 2nd half of 2021, marketers say

According to a recent Marketing Land survey of 300 people, 3 out of 10 people responded that they anticipate attending in-person events in the first half of 2021. In another survey, 70% of respondents plan to attend solely online events until a Covid-19 vaccine emerges.

U.S. Mobile Ad Spending Update

In March, E Marketer’s Mobile Ad Spending Report forecasted that the pandemic would cause a 20% increase in mobile ad spending, but they have now updated this expectancy and reduced it to 4.8% growth. Among mobile advertising results, location-based advertising has suffered, and gaming and streaming video apps have done well. This year’s lost growth in mobile ad spending will affect overall spending through at least 2024.

COVID-19 Is the Asteroid That Struck American Small Business

Positive news regarding the virus is 78% of small businesses report being able to survive 7 to 12 months or more with existing cash on hand, and 57% could last over a year. Restaurants suffered primarily, as there were over 133,000 business closures total and of the 26,000 Yelp restaurants that have been closed since March, 60% were now permanently closed. A majority of 92% of businesses report pivoting strategy in at least one way form the pandemic. The most common change was a creation of delivery channel, and 96% of businesses reported planning to keep some new services and channels post-pandemic, while 43% will maintain all changes. Find out more on Search Engine Land.

 

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Utilize Marketing Audiences on Pinterest Today

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pinterest marketingPinterest is a valuable marketing tool, as 88% of pinners purchase something they have pinned, and 49% purchase 5 or more products they have pinned. Despite its effectiveness as a marketing tool, only 28% of marketers are already using Pinterest, so get ahead of the competition and start using this visual platform today.

Who’s Using Pinterest?

Pinterest has over 335 million  worldwide users and 88 million users from the United States. With over 200 billion Pinterest pins and 4 billion boards, users save 2 million shopping pins on boards daily. 71% of Pinterest users are female. In the United states, 40% of dads use Pinterest, and 80% of moms. The median age of Pinterest users is 40, however most active “Pinners” are below 40 years old. Gen Z adults and millennials are the most dedicated users, however Gen X users increased daily use by 10% from 2018 to 2019.

30 Ways to Boost Instagram Engagement and Following

Marketing on Pinterest: Homebuilding, Crafts, Senior Living, Real Estate, CPG, and more

Two thirds of pins represent brands and products, and 50% of users have made a purchase after seeing a promoted pin.  According to Mintel’s February 2020 Arts and Crafts Consumer Report, Pinterest is largely used to spread creativity through DIY crafts, creating a valuable marketing opportunity for craft and home decorating companies. Pinterest is also a valuable tool for homebuilders to reach consumers through typing in keywords linked to related visual boards of ideas and products. Additionally, Pinterest is a marketing tool to promote services as well, such as Senior living facilities. A platform that provides a unique way to visually display information, Pinterest provides a way for your brand to share health and caregiver related articles, exercise routines for seniors, home health care products, images from your service’s website, and even healthy recipes. As nearly 30% of Pinterest users have a 6-figure income, Pinterest is a  sufficient platform for real estate companies to reach their target audiences. In a study of 9 million consumers, consumer packaged goods (CPG) marketing research shows that Pinterest households were 29% more likely to try a new product within the first 10 months of launch than non-Pinner households, and the Pinner “trial date” was 40% higher in the first 30 days of launch than non-Pinners. Experts say the study shows that people on Pinterest are more likely to try new CPG products. Overall, 75% of Pinners say they are “very interested” in new products compared to 55% with the same level of interest on other digital platforms.

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30 Greatest Lead Generation Tips

 

30 Ways to Boost Instagram Engagement & Following

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Looking for ways to boost your social media brand presence? Knowing how to increase brand engagement on Instagram, the latest and hippest social media platform app, is a great start. People are online all day due to working from home. Virtual shopping has risen due to restrictions and pandemic fears. As we have geared toward a more online world, your brand’s presence on the web is more important now than ever.

Why Instagram?

According to Forbes, 80% of Instagram users follow at least one business or brand, and 200 million users on Instagram visit business profiles daily. 70% of users turn to Instagram to look up a brand, and 60% learn about new products using Instagram. Now is the time to catch up with the competition that is already using these trends to their advantage.

Here is a compilation of our 30 best marketing tips for businesses to grow Instagram engagement and following in 2020:

Instagram Profile and Posting Habits

  1. Get to know the Instagram app and master how to use its basic features such as uploading posts and stories.
  2. Write a compelling Instagram bio and integrate it into your brand personality.
  3. Keep posts visually consistent to meet your brand’s style guide and tone.
  4. Incorporate categorized pinned stories on your Instagram page so it is easily navigable and can be used as a resource for sharing your brand identity to consumers.
  5. Optimize captions using brand hashtags and relevant hashtags with high popularity. (Determine if a hashtag is trending by typing the hashtag in the instagram search bar to see how many posts come up with the hashtag.)
  6. Use tools such as Hashtagsforlikes to optimize hashtags to use for your business sector.
  7. Create and promote a specific branded hashtag for a campaign. Encourage others to share the hashtag with it theming around a relevant, trending topic that consumers are passionate about.
  8. Use local hashtags and geotags on posts in order to attract local users on Instagram in a similar way SEO works for the web.
  9. Post consistently with both posts and stories, including videos, polls, and other interactive elements to keep followers engaged and entertained with your content. 
  10. Start conversations using Instagram stories stickers and polls.
  11. Schedule Instagram stories to generate more views.
  12. Keep in mind that 40% of Instagram videos do not have sound on, so ensure you caption relevant verbal content.
  13. Convert instagram followers into email subscribers by making your Instagram a business account and promoting your email subscriptions in your Instagram posts and stories.
  14. Monitor your tagged photos to ensure a good reputation, and un-tag your account on posts that are irrelevant or spam, so they do not appear on your profile.
  15. Add a link to instagram stories in order to generate website traffic.
  16. Use humor through gif’s and memes to execute your brand message through a creative angle.

Increasing your Instagram following

  1. Optimize SEO on instagram by paying vital attention to your Instagram handle and name. It is very important that your handle (@…) reflects your business industry. Try to make it short, sweet, and with relevant words. The account name should reflect the account handle and industry because it is what Instagram checks its searches against when users type a word or emoji in the search bar.
  2. Partner with micro influencers.
  3. Run a contest, giveaway, or raffle entry through your account page.
  4. Invest in Instagram ads, which targets customers with personalization and buyer persona techniques.
  5. Create “savable” content, or posts that are aesthetically pleasing, informationally useful or relevant. This will entice followers to save the content to their library and increases the chances of further brand awareness. Simultaneously, creating desirable content provides people a reason to continue following your page and share your content.
  6. Participate in popular conversations on accounts with high following and public relevance in order to get your instagram handle out there and quickly generate new followers.
  7. Encourage followers to re-share your Instagram stories through incentives of discount promotion codes and/or contests.
  8. Open up about your business with a weekly featured vlog of the day in the life of an employee, an interesting biographical picture and captioned story of the founders, or inspirational quote from the CEO.
  9. Follow relevant accounts and users following competition in your industry to gain followers back.
  10. Promote your Instagram on other social media accounts. Feature your Instagram account in your Twitter and Facebook bios, and make a post promoting your Instagram page with a link.
  11. If your Facebook has many likes or followers already, consider linking your Facebook and Instagram together to boost your Instagram following.

6 Social Media Trends to Follow in 2020

Keeping Track of your Instagram Performance

  1. Ensure your account is in business mode to automatically receive valuable insights and analytics on how your posts are doing.
  2. Regularly test and analyze new content to post to your Instagram.
  3. Use a free follower tracking app to regularly unfollow accounts that do not follow yours back in order to maintain a good follower/following ratio while continuously following new accounts.

We hope these 30 tips with various resources serve you well on your journey to becoming an Instagram lead-generation powerhouse. Happy “gram-ing”!

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july 2020 marketing trends

What’s Trending in Marketing for July 2020

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During this Covid-19 summer, staying current on marketing trends is especially important to assess whether your marketing efforts are harmonious with today’s evolving world. We know the difficulty of keeping up with these trends given the abundance of information thrown at us every day. The following articles highlight current marketing trends that we think are worth paying attention to:

Noteworthy Marketing News

Zuckerberg: Advertisers will be back to Facebook ‘soon enough’

Over 600 brands are a part of the “Stop Hate for Profit” campaign boycotting Facebook advertising due to their accusation that Facebook policies are too slow at removing hateful content. A recent BBC article reports that CEO Mark Zuckerberg does not plan to acknowledge the boycott, believing these companies will return to Facebook Ads soon enough. Read more on BBC. 

Google Adds Auto-Generated ‘Smart Replies’ to YouTube Studio

Google added automatic “smart replies” to YouTube studio to ease communication and engagement for creators. According to Google, the system is the first of its kind to have cross-lingual and character-byte based features. This new feature is currently available for English and Spanish only. The system scans comments on YouTube videos and provides suggested quick replies to each for the account owner to select. Over time, it adapts response suggestions to the user’s conversational tone and style. This new feature can allow youtube users to enhance their public relations image with fans and subscribers. Get the full story on Social Media Today. 

Enjoy this Article: Marketing Trends in April 2020

Improving Your Marketing Program

Free Digital Marketing Tools to Cope With COVID-19

During these trying times, we are seeing free and discounted digital marketing tools, being used to support sales and service professionals. This generosity has helped keep marketing teams engaged, support demand generation initiatives, and enable sales and service professionals to better meet the needs of their customers. While this list may not be comprehensive, here are some recommendations for the most valuable digital marketing tools available to sales, marketing, and customer success professionals today.

Marketing Strategies In Times of Fear and Uncertainty

Your marketing strategies must play a role in reassuring customers. Unfortunately, there is much uncertainty in the world, and that’s truer now than ever before. It’s no secret that the coronavirus has left many people in a state of fear, anxiety and grief. We know this is a great time to be marketing- but perhaps are unsure what is best for every customer during these times. While these concerns are logical, it’s important to keep a positive attitude. Your marketing strategies should be about helping your customers keep that positive attitude. Here are a few ways to help them do just that.

Blog vs. Vlog: Why Your Business Should Begin Vlogging

The blog has long been one of the preferred tactics for content marketing strategies. Using a blog, you can easily publish a variety of different content, from written articles to infographics and more. However, blogging isn’t the only content marketing tactic that works. More and more businesses are beginning to vlog as well. The concept of a vlog is simple — it’s a blog in video form. The question is how do you decide which to choose between blog vs. vlog for which type of content?

 

Recent Marketing Reports, Updates, and Trendsjuly marketing trends

Coronavirus Forces Dramatic Change in Marketing, But More Can Be Done to Adapt

The current state of uncertainty is impacting 82% of marketer’s day-to-day life. There is room for improvement in marketer’s internal communication with employees, as 60% provide regular updates to everyone on organization impact and 54% provide regular internal updates on the customer’s feelings and behavior. 72% of marketers have communicated with customers about their organization’s next steps. However, 58% of marketers report difficulty due to their organization’s reaction to the pandemic. For instance, 48% have frozen hiring, 56% have reduced marketing budgets, with the average budget reduction over 30%, mainly in creative and media spend categories. The largest cuts are in the digital channel. These drastic cuts in marketing spending are expected to hurt brand equity long-term. 40% of marketers have developed coronavirus-specific creative, 16% have increased corporate social responsibility and 34% have begun offering promotions to engage customers during the situation. More about the study is available on AMA. 

IAB U.S. 2020 Digital Video Advertising Spend Report: Putting COVID in Context

Due to connected TV, video campaigns remain stable among the cancelled campaigns due to the pandemic. IAB’s U.S. 2020 Digital Video Advertising Spend Report found that Connected TV was the least impacted by Covid-19. Key findings include that the average Connected TV spend for the year is expected to reach $16 million per advertiser, which is a 8% rise. More than half of these buyers are switching dollars from broadcast and Cable TV towards Connected TV.  The largest buyer categories are retail spending $32.2 million per advertiser, media/entertainment spending $31.9 million per advertiser and telecom spending $20.6 million per advertiser. The hardest hit in 2020 is expected to be video advertising on desktop. Download IAB’s full report here.

Homebuilder Sentiment Posts a Record Jump in June, signaling a Housing-Market Rebound from the Coronavirus Pandemic

The National Association of Homebuilders/ Wells Fargo Housing Market Index’s report of homebuilder sentiment rose to 58 in June, which was a record-high 21-point jump. According to the index, anything above 50 indicates a positive market. As mortgage rates are at all-time lows, 10.9% more people applied to purchase a home this May compared to 2019. Overall, all components of the housing market index gained in June. The positive outlook in this industry points to a notable opportunity for homebuilder marketers. Read more on the Business Insider. 

Manufacturing bounces back stronger than expected in June, ISM reading shows

For the first time since the pandemic lockdown, over half of U.S. manufactures reported better-than-expected expansion in June. According to the Institute for Supply Manufacturing survey, 52.6% of companies reported growth, which was higher than economist expectations. Only 5 out of 18 industries reported negatively. Textile mills, wood products, furniture and related products had the highest expansion. In May, employment went up 10 points, production up 33.2 points, and new orders up 31.8 points. Manufacturing companies have a marketing opportunity as business begins to rise in these industries. CNBC has the full story here.

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What’s Trending in Marketing For April 2020

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It is important to be informed about what is going on in the marketing industry. Doing so is a great way to stay up to date and tweak your marketing strategies so you can stay ahead of the competition. The following articles are from popular marketing blogs and highlight current marketing trends that we think are worth paying attention to:

Noteworthy Marketing News

How the COVID-19 pandemic is pushing brands to connect digitally

Because of COVID-19 and the nationwide stay-at-home orders, retailers are quickly switching up their marketing strategies by putting an emphasis on mobile technology and virtual appointments to keep their businesses operating. Doctors are conducting virtual consultations for their clients. Retailers are connecting with their customers online by hosting virtual lunches, happy hours, and outfit try-on sessions. Alex Fitzgerald, Manager of Consumer Practice, believes this will be an acceleration towards digital.

How working from home has thrown a wrench in campaign targeting

Working remotely has been helping businesses stay in operation as the world is going through this time of uncertainty. But for some businesses, it can be hard to make sense of data that may not be as reliable due to the shift in work environments. Working from home has made analytics and cookie data less reliable.

When your Google My Business listing becomes your lifeline

During COVID-19, Google My Business can turn into a business’s lifeline during this time of uncertainty and disruption. People normally use GMB to get info about store hours and customer reviews to learn about a business. During this pandemic, consumers are searching different topics such as “Are you open while we shelter in place?” and “Do you offer curbside delivery?” It is important during these times to keep your GMB up to date and provide useful, relevant information for consumers.

Enjoy this article: What’s Trending In Marketing For March 2020

Improving Your Marketing Program

7 Tips For Success When Working Remotely

If you are working remotely for the first time, making the adjustment can be challenging. It can be helpful to get tips and tricks on how to stay motivated and focused.  Other factors such as establishing a routine and maintaining a regular schedule are discussed. Check out the article for more advice on how to be as productive as possible.

8 Ways That You Can Improve Your SEO

It is important that you stay up to date with your SEO strategy. It is helpful to continually do keyword research to identify what keywords your target audience is using. This will also help give you a good rank. Other strategies such as updating your old content, monitoring backlinks, and tracking performance are all important factors that can help improve your SEO.

How Healthcare Content Marketing Companies Can Step Up In 2020

With the COVID-19 pandemic spreading across the nation, healthcare content marketing is more valued than ever before. It is important for healthcare companies to take advantage of their increased website traffic. The content they post should be reliable. It is helpful to create specific landing pages to route people to the right resources.

Recent Marketing Reports, Updates, and TrendsMobile Marketing Strategy 1

30 Marketing Statistics to Consider for 2020

Keep up with what new research is telling us about the marketing industry. Learn the most recent statistics and what your company needs to know to stay updated with their social media, advertising, search marketing, and more.

Local ad revenue forecast contracts 10.6% due to coronavirus, study says

Local advertising revenue in the U.S. is expected to total $144.3 billion in 2020, which is a 10.6% decrease from the $161.3 billion previously forecasted. The new estimate shows a 3.6% decline from 2019 activity even with political advertising revenue of $7.1 billion expected this election year.

NFL Draft scores 55M viewers, breaking ratings records despite shift to virtual format

This year’s NFL Draft saw ratings up 16% year-on-year despite the shift to a virtual format due to the coronavirus pandemic. The draft broke ratings records as the number of viewers increased each day.

A GUIDE TO EFFECTIVE MOBILE MARKETING TECHNIQUES